Gunmen massacre nine agricultural workers in Kaduna, abduct numerous others

A brutal raid by bandits on a village in Kaduna State, northwestern Nigeria, has resulted in the deaths of at least nine farmers, with several others taken captive, as revealed in a security report and corroborated by a local source on Sunday.

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The incident is part of a larger trend of increased attacks by jihadists and criminal gangs on farming communities in northern and central Nigeria, particularly during the annual rainy season, as these groups demand levies from the communities.

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Kaduna State is among the regions bearing the brunt of these attacks, which involve the raiding of villages, killing and kidnapping of residents for ransom, and looting and burning of homes.

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A security report prepared for the United Nations, accessed on Sunday, details how the attackers targeted farmlands outside Kakangi village in Birnin Gwari district on Saturday, shooting farmers as they worked in their fields.

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According to the report, nine bodies have been recovered so far, with six of the victims identified by local authorities, although community leader Kabiru Ishaq, who visited the village, reported a higher death toll of 10 people.

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Ishaq attributed the attack to an earlier incident where farmers thwarted a robbery attempt, resulting in the death of a bandit, which prompted the bandit's accomplice to return with reinforcements and launch a retaliatory assault.

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This motive is also cited in the security report, highlighting the cycle of violence in the region.

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Despite a peace agreement brokered by local authorities between farming communities and bandits in November 2024, attacks have continued in the Birnin Gwari district, with a recent incident last month resulting in the deaths of at least six farmers and the kidnapping of 20 others in Danauta village.